Lee Edward Smith Jr. was charged with two counts of engaging in sex trafficking of an individual in connection with the case. He’s currently in custody, with prosecutors seeking $250,000 bail.

According to the charges, Minneapolis police received information on Aug. 4 about a juvenile female placed on a Backpage.com advertisement offering sex. An investigation showed an email used to place the ad was traced to an apartment on the 3600 block of Nicollet Avenue along with a phone number.

Authorities called the number to pose as a buyer seeking services. Officers observed a woman exiting the front door of the residence and walking around, looking for someone. The buyer then got a text message from the number, asking where he was.

The complaint states on Aug. 14, police found another ad posted by the same person. Authorities obtained a search warrant, and a white male was spotted entering the residence and leaving after 15 minutes. He was stopped by police and admitted to paying $100 for sex inside the residence. He said he found an ad on Backpage.com and had been there twice for prostitution.

Officers searched the residence and located Smith Jr. He was taken into custody, and three females were also inside the residence. Officers also discovered a cell phone belonging to Smith Jr. and saw text messages saying “in calls” and “full service.”

The complaint states one of the women told police she had been staying there for a few months and that Smith and another woman were posting prostitution ads, and she would get drugs from them. The two would get men to respond to the ads, and the woman would greet them at the door. She said she had a date on Aug. 13 and received $140 for oral sex. She also said Smith would give her crack when she wanted it.

The complaint states another woman, likely a vulnerable adult, received $200 for sex and would always give it to Smith. She said she would have “dates” all day long, up to five times per day and that she kept telling him she didn’t want to do it. She said she was scared of Smith and he threatened her.

According to the complaint, Smith Jr.’s girlfriend spoke with police and didn’t want to talk about him and betray him. In another interview, she admitted he made prostitution ads, and that she performed prostitution acts as well.

If convicted, Smith Jr. faces up to 30 years in prison and $80,000 in fines.

]]>https://atypicalfemaledotblog.com/go/uncategorized/womens-oppression-across-the-globe/
Wed, 16 Aug 2017 16:19:49 +0000Alihttps://atypicalfemaledotblog.com/go/uncategorized/womens-oppression-across-the-globe/Disclaimer: this post contains information that may be concerning to those sensitive to the topics of genital mutilation.

Something I have been deeply moved by since I first picked up a book and read into the subject is the oppression of women worldwide. Specifically, countries like India where a caste system society is very much still present, tribal African societies that have little government protection for women and girls, and middle east countries that enforce Sharia law, or even the most “westernized” middle eastern countries still face blatant oppression. I preach my qualms about women’s rights, and the oppression of women in our western world but, we as feminists need to recognize the oppression of women worldwide as a cause worth fighting. To be faced with the truly heinous treatment of women in these countries is gut wrenching to say the least; where forced marriage of young girls, rape for discipline, female genital mutilation, and honor violence and killings are status quo in the regulation of womanly obedience. It surely makes the issues of the western feminist movement look small; I don’t say that to diminish the issues we face here at home, but it is merely a reference for perspective.

In countries like India young girls are sold to sex traffickers. Rural girls are kidnapped, or lured under false promises of employment, where they are then sold into city brothels. They are savagely beaten, raped, forcefully addicted to methamphetamine, often experience tactical mental manipulation, or most commonly a combination of all of these things. Once they are manipulated into complete subservience, they are then forced to prostitute themselves. Girls are required to see 10 or more customers a day, 7 days a week, every cent of their income going to brothel owners. Their futures are bleak, and hopeless, these young children being treated so inhumanely. Some brothels host prepubescent girls, with many clientele specifically seeking this out. Some foundations fight to aid these young girls and women. Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn authored the book Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide. I highly suggest adding this to your reading list, it is one of the books that got me hooked on the movement. It is an emotionally difficult experience to read, as it is entirely firsthand accounts of girls and women and their experiences with sex trafficking, forced prostitution, rape and abuse. Since the 2009 release, their book has inspired a movement. Also, they have created a four-hour documentary with the same title, traveling all over the world from the US to Cambodia to Afghanistan. Another foundation that I’ve just learned about, as they are our newest sponsor at my place of employment, is Operation Underground Railroad (link provided below). Their operation directly aids in rescuing children from sex traffickers in the US and around the world. Check out their webpage if you’d like to donate, volunteer, or take part in one of their 5K and 3K run events for fundraising and awareness.

Women in Middle Eastern countries like Afghanistan and Iraq face a daunting task for revolution; shocking news I know. Ali here, reporting to you commonly known facts. In a country where women aren’t really considered human beings at all, due to cultural, legal and social enforcement of radical Islam and Sharia law. Some wild claims have been made that women in these societies like the way their world is, and would not want it changed by westernized democracy. Hi, Ali here again, reporting that is utter bullshit. These are wild and transparently false claims put out there by brainwashed propagandists. As a comparison for reference, that would be like the world holding the Westboro Baptist Church as an accurate representation for all of Christianity. Insulting, right? Good, now you understand the wildness of these claims. Imagine it, for most women in westernized countries it is simply unimaginable; no right to education, (young girls like the famous Malala, shot in the head for protesting the right to learn), no right to employment, enforced head-to-toe body coverings, required male chaperones to go anywhere, arranged marriage, public beatings for making eye contact with any man who is not a husband or relative, stoning, acid burning for any “shame” brought upon by a woman, yeah sign me up for that! Organizations like the Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan, RAWA, is direct proof of the outcry, the outrage, the widely united front against their oppression. The hijab (headscarf), the burqa (full body), and any sort of covering of the female body is not female empowerment, it is not giving a woman power over her own body, it is oppression. I am a woman, my ankles and wrists show freely, and I am still in complete power of my own body. During the late 80’s, the Turkish government outlawed wearing the hijab, but in 2013 this ban was lifted. This has caused a rift, between young progressive women, and their generational predecessors. Young women who do not see the necessity of the hijab, and see precisely what it does stand for, are now openly shamed and publicly criticized by men and women who support the hijab. These women are even physically attacked for not wearing their hijabs, because if a woman is not wearing her hijab, she is clearly a harlot seeking sexual attention and the epitome of impurity. This has led to a united front against any type of dress code oppression. Movements like the “Don’t Mess with My Outfit” March have united large groups of women to fight for their own freedom. Check out this post about the topic and you can see a YouTube video of a woman being physically assaulted for her clothing in Istanbul: https://whyevolutionistrue.wordpress.com/2017/08/01/women-in-istanbul-stage-dont-mess-with-my-outfit-march-against-increasing-islamic-modesty-standards/ Also, another book to add to the list, check out Veiled Courage: Inside the Afghan Women’s Resistance, by Cheryl Benard; a documentation of the covert operations of women inside RAWA.

Of all the types of oppression and abuse that women experience, by far, the most violent and gruesome is that of female genital mutilation, abbreviated FGM. There are several types of mutilation used against women and have been classified by four criteria. I have read books and researched the topic, and it is not an easy subject to venture into; especially when reading or listening to first hand experiences of women that have been subjected to this medieval tradition. I will not go into full detail about the four types of mutilation but I will provide links with information and, as always, encourage education. The gist and purpose of FGM is to take away any sexual pleasure or desire a woman would experience during sexual intercourse. It is also seen as a means to keep “purity” intact. This is usually done by cutting certain parts of the exterior genitalia such as the clitoris or labia. In more severe types of FGM, the exterior labia (majora) is sewn to enclose the vagina. You don’t have to be a vagina scientist to understand the serious implications of this type of mutilation. Trouble with urination and menstrual flow, severe and chronic pain, obvious complications during intercourse and childbirth, and of course the more immediate impacts of the procedure are infection and shock leading to death. These heinous procedures are performed on young girls, children, usually between the ages of 4 to 14. In many cases, without any sort of anesthetic.

This FGM crisis is closer to home than you’d think. The US has seen a rise in the incidents of FGM correlating with an influx of immigrants from countries whom widely practice this “cultural custom”. America, the land for religious freedom, is the ideal place to settle for immigrants and refugees of war torn government-less countries. And assuredly their cultural and religious beliefs will be protected. No type of violence should be condoned by any religion, any culture, any custom, and should certainly not be protected by vague legislation and blatant abuse of the constitution. There are 24 states in the US that do not have any specific legislation to protect these children from FGM, one of them being the state in which I live, New Mexico. Ayaan Hirsi Ali, a victim of FGM herself, is an advocate for these young girls. She actively speaks out against such acts, specifically in the name of Islam. If you are interested in getting involved in advocacy I highly recommend visiting her website, the AHA foundation; I have provided the link below. The biggest step toward protection for these young girls within the US is to push for legislation. American pediatricians are finding numerous cases of FGM and reporting it to authorities. In most of these cases, these acts are protected by the shenanigans knows as “religious freedom”. In the words of the brilliant Sam Harris, if it was a religious belief to cut out the eyeballs of every third born child, people would be rampaging in the streets to put a stop to it. But because we are discussing something that no one wants to talk about, no one wants to be faced with, that is the genitalia of young girls, people will stick their heads in the sand and look the other way. If you live in one of the 24 states without such protections, contacting your state representatives and presenting your concerns about the subject is the best step in progress for change. I recently contacted the AHA group with interest in how I can go about this. I was provided with great information on how to find my own state representatives and the steps for contacting them. I will provide the link below, if you live in the state of New Mexico, to help you on your way to making a difference. I sent an email to my State Representative, Christine Trujillo. If you need further help with this, there are letter samples from the AHA website. Also, for a list of the 24 states please visit the AHA website, and some of the states have quick links to find your own state representatives and drafted letters to use. It might shock you to find your state on the list: California, Texas, Colorado to name a few.

It is time to see change, make change, and be a part of that change. Look outside of yourself, at this absurd world we live in. Especially if you’ve been given the undeserved luck of being born in a world where you are not faced with this inhumane suffering. Where our voices can be heard, our voices can make a difference, direct that voice to such a justified cause. I have the constitutionally protected right to use my voice, and I choose to use it for those who do not have this luxury.

Please check out these great links and foundations if you wish to educate yourselves and take steps toward advocacy and change:

The U.S Attorney’s office says 29-year-old Jason Prawl was also sentenced Monday in Hartford federal court to five years of supervised release. The Bridgeport man pleaded guilty in May to a charge of sex trafficking of a minor.

Authorities say Prawl recruited and transported the two victims to engage in sex acts. They say he began prostituting the 17-year-old girls in 2015. An investigation revealed that he tried to recruit a third minor into prostitution.

Prawl has been ordered to pay more than $10,000 in restitution to the first victim and $2,500 to the second.

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — Federal authorities say a Connecticut man is headed to prison for more than 12 years for the sex trafficking of two girls.

The U.S Attorney’s office says 29-year-old Jason Prawl was also sentenced Monday in Hartford federal court to five years of supervised release. The Bridgeport man pleaded guilty in May to a charge of sex trafficking of a minor.

Authorities say Prawl recruited and transported the two victims to engage in sex acts. They say he began prostituting the 17-year-old girls in 2015. An investigation revealed that he tried to recruit a third minor into prostitution.

Prawl has been ordered to pay more than $10,000 in restitution to the first victim and $2,500 to the second.

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) —A Bridgeport man faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years in prison when he is sentenced on federal child sex trafficking charges.

Twenty-nine-year-old Jason Prawl, who pleaded guilty in May, is scheduled to go back before a U.S. District Court judge in Hartford on Monday.

Prawl was one of five people arrested during a human trafficking sting in Milford in February 2016.

Prosecutors say he recruited a 17-year-old girl who began seeing men in Prawl’s apartment beginning in December 2015.

They say Prawl used the website backpage.com to advertise the minor for up to $150 per hour, and the victim saw approximately four clients a day for approximately 30 days with Prawl keeping about $20 from each appointment.

Prawl has been detained since his arrest in March 2016.

Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Prawl was one of five people arrested during a human trafficking sting in Milford in February 2016.

Prosecutors say he recruited a 17-year-old girl who began seeing men in Prawl’s apartment beginning in December 2015.

They say Prawl used the website backpage.com to advertise the minor for up to $150 per hour, and the victim saw approximately four clients a day for approximately 30 days with Prawl keeping about $20 from each appointment.

]]>https://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/go/news/david-parker-sex-trafficking/
Sat, 12 Aug 2017 03:51:30 +0000tituscbshttps://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/go/news/david-parker-sex-trafficking/SCRANTON, Pa. (AP) — One of six people charged with sexually assaulting a boy at parties where people wore animal costumes has entered a plea deal in Pennsylvania.

Saylorsburg resident David Parker pleaded guilty Monday to child sex trafficking in the agreement with prosecutors. In return, prosecutors are recommending a 30-year sentence in federal prison. Parker had faced life in prison if convicted at trial.

SCRANTON, Pa. (AP) – One of six people charged with sexually assaulting a boy at parties where people wore animal costumes has entered a plea deal in Pennsylvania.

Saylorsburg resident David Parker pleaded guilty Monday to child sex trafficking in the agreement with prosecutors. In return, prosecutors are recommending a 30-year sentence in federal prison. Parker had faced life in prison if convicted at trial.

Parker admits he took the boy to Luzerne County to be molested between June 2010 and August 2010.

The boy says he was forced to dress as Tony the Tiger at the parties where he was assaulted.

Attorney General Josh Shapiro has said the boy was abused for nearly eight years, starting in 2009.

Two men and a woman from Pennsylvania and two men from Virginia also are charged.

(Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

Backpage and the Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act of 2017

About Taina Bien-Aimé

Taina Bien-Aimé has over two decades of experience defending the rights of women and girls at the national and global level. She is currently the Executive Director of the Coalition Against Trafficking in Women (CATW), one of the oldest international organizations dedicated to ending trafficking in women and girls and commercial sexual exploitation as practices of gender-based violence.

Prior to this position, Taina was the Executive Director of Women’s City Club of New York, an advocacy organization that helps shape policy in New York. She was a founding Board member of Equality Now, an international human rights organization working to promote the human rights of women and girls, and served as its General Counsel (2000-2001) and subsequently, its Executive Director (2001-2011). She was also Director of Business Affairs/Film Acquisitions at Home Box Office (1996-2000) and practiced international corporate law at the Wall Street law firm, Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton (1992-1996). Taina holds a Juris Doctor from NYU School of Law where she received the Vanderbilt Medal. She earned a Licence in Political Science from the University of Geneva/Graduate School of International Studies (Hautes Etudes Internationales) in Switzerland. Taina has received a number of awards for her work and has extensive media experience, including with the New York Times, Associated Press, Reuters, CNN, the Amanpour Show and many other print and television outlets. She is a contributor to the Huffington Post; sits on the New York Women’s Foundation Board and on New York City’s Mayoral Commission on Gender Equity.

NEWS

Anti-diversity manifesto circulates at Google while it is under investigation for employment discrimination. https://t.co/ByvsvIv6Wj

Born in a village deep in the Cambodian forest, Somaly Mam was sold into sexual slavery by her grandfather when she was twelve years old. For the next decade she was shuttled through the brothels that make up the sprawling sex trade of Southeast Asia. Trapped in this dangerous and desperate world, she suffered the brutality and horrors of human trafficking—rape, torture, deprivation—until she managed to escape with the help of a French aid worker. Emboldened by her newfound freedom, education, and security, Somaly blossomed, but remained haunted by the girls in the brothels she left behind. Synopsis via Good Reads

Author: Somaly Mam is an author from Cambodia as well as, a human rights advocate who focuses on sex trafficking.

Final Thoughts: The book speaks of horrific ordeals sex trafficked persons and prostitutes face in South Asia, specifically, Cambodia. Mam illustrates every aspect of forced prostitution in Cambodia and the effects it has on the victim, their family and community, and the nation. I love how she adds touches of “normalcy” when she talks about her “father” the man you gave her the name Somaly Mam as well as, her husband Pierre (I wasn’t a fan sometimes because he seemed egotistical and had this weird “white savior complex) and her daughter. Putting that aside and the accusations of her story being fake as well as, abuse happening inside her facility. This book makes you think about the after effects of war, no matter how long it has been or side you‘re on, innocent citizens seem to bear the brunt of it all. Before the Khumar and After the regime paint two different pictures and she talks about how people become desensitized to it all and how parents and relatives sold their own children into brothels and how people looked down on prostitutes in the morning but came to them at night. The hypocrisy of it all was not lost to me. I love how she adds touches of history and how there’s this interconnection between Cambodia, Thailand, and Vietnam–all countries who suffered and bared the brunt of super powers back in the late 40’s and even now. This doesn’t excuse what the people of the government are doing but you can see how War and power struggles opened a vacuum that seems to be filled with inhumane treatment and forced prostitution. Though the book was eye-opening and tragic; I often felt as if two individuals were writing this book and were at war with each other. One that wanted to paint a pretty picture but also wanted you to see a tragedy happening somewhere; knowing that you would be sad for a moment and move on with your life because you could donate and not get involved. The second felt like a survivor(s) speaking up about a tragedy that they feel would remain buried forever and that the cycle of abuse would continue if someone doesn’t speak out. I was difficult at times reading not only because of the content the how horrific so many of the victims suffered but also because I couldn’t understand the direction the author was going or how they wanted the audience to feel.

Rate: 7

I felt as if I was a part of Somaly’s experience (sometimes) and the book is a subject that I’ve been interested in for as long as I can remember. And putting the controversy aside, the book is great and I’d recommend it to someone who wants to understand issues faced by victims of sex trafficked–I liked how Mam explained how no two cases are the same and you shouldn’t judge sex workers by the perceptions the world throws at you or them as well as, how you shouldn’t assume someone’s reason for being a sex worker. I rate it a 7 out 10 because the back and forth writing was confusing and sometimes I couldn’t understand the direction of the book.

Also, if you want to know more about the controversy you can watch Al Jazeera’s 101 East – Truth or Lies: Somaly Mam below

]]>https://theadvocatespost.org/go/trafficking/ensuring-justice-enforcement-of-labor-trafficking-and-labor-exploitation-laws/
Tue, 08 Aug 2017 13:50:38 +0000theadvocatesposthttps://theadvocatespost.org/go/trafficking/ensuring-justice-enforcement-of-labor-trafficking-and-labor-exploitation-laws/After being recruited for a high-paying job in the United States, Hanh left her impoverished community in Vietnam, departing on her quest for the American Dream. Hanh paid a large fee to travel from Vietnam to Minnesota under the assumption that her employer had made all the necessary immigration arrangements. However, this person who had promised Hanh a new life was a labor trafficker who threatened harm to Hanh and her family if she did not submit to servitude. Living in fear of violence and watching her debt swell, Hanh was not only imprisoned by her circumstance but also by her inability to communicate and seek help. Eventually, law enforcement learned of her situation and successfully convicted her trafficker of forced labor, freeing seven others like her in the process.

These stories of labor trafficking are not isolated—in fact, The Advocates has heard reports of more than thirty-six labor trafficking victims in Minnesota. Still, there have only been a handful of criminal convictions under federal law and only two under the Minnesota labor trafficking statute. This disparity suggests that the enforcement of criminal labor and trafficking laws is inadequate and offenders are not being held accountable for their crimes. The Advocates for Human Rights recently published a report, “Asking the Right Questions: A Human Rights Approach to Ending Trafficking and Exploitation in the Workplace,” that examines how labor trafficking and exploitation continue to exist in Minnesota.

In this report, The Advocates assesses the possible barriers to prosecution despite the available legal framework. First, The Advocates found that the requirement that victims cooperate in a case in order to receive benefits such as immigration status, originally intended to strengthen prosecution efforts, has instead hampered enforcement. By providing a benefit to a witness, the government risks undermining the witness’ credibility in a criminal case. Secondly, Minnesota’s state criminal labor trafficking law is largely underutilized. Though the state’s broadened definition of a “trafficker” and a “beneficiary” could increase a victim’s access to justice, its lack of use leaves the possibility untested.

The enforcement of labor laws is another vital component to protect victims of labor trafficking. Unfortunately, both federal and state labor laws contain major exemptions that allow abusive employers, including traffickers, to exploit their workers. This is precisely what happened to Jorge. When recruited to come to Minnesota to work in roofing, Jorge trusted his recruiter to help him find jobs and to negotiate his wages since he did not speak English and lacked legal immigration status. This subcontractor, who had Jorge sign over every paycheck, gave Jorge cash back—but only after robbing him of most of the money he had worked for. Based on the Advocates’ research, there are multiple factors which create an environment within which this kind of abuse has become far too common.

First, exemptions to wage and hour laws in agriculture and domestic service remove a level of government oversight which creates trafficking opportunities. In Jorge’s case, his trafficker stole most of his paycheck, but because the cash he gave Jorge met the minimum wage, Jorge could not press charges under wage and hour legislation. Further, he could not make a claim against the larger company that built the homes he worked on because workers must prove the contracting relationship is illegitimate in order to hold the contracting company liable. Accountability is often impossible in the complex web of subcontractors and independent contractors. This, coupled with confusing standards between different federal agencies and state policies, leaves workers ill-equipped to advocate for themselves. Moreover, the lack of coordination on labor exploitation hampers the complaint process. After being referred from one agency to the next, Jorge was forced to cut his losses, find a new job, and sacrifice his pursuit of justice.

This report by The Advocates for Human Rights has highlighted a number of crucial areas of improvement in enforcing criminal labor trafficking and labor exploitation laws. There is a need for training and resources for our law enforcement, community organizations, and other agencies to effectively identify and help protect victims of labor trafficking and exploitation. The following are priority recommendations to help bolster Minnesota’s efforts to improve its fight against trafficking:

· Policy makers need to provide resources for training law enforcement and prosecutors on Minnesota’s labor trafficking laws, including investigative techniques and protections for victims.

· Policy makers need to examine how to provide an accessible system that makes sure workers can recover lost wages in a timely manner and at little to no cost, especially with smaller claims.

By Hannah Mangen , a student at The University of Minnesota in Saint Paul (class of 2018) with a major in Global Studies and Communication. She currently works as a research intern with The Advocates’ human trafficking team.

This post is the fourth in a series on labor trafficking. Additional post in the series include:

]]>https://buffalohair.wordpress.com/go/asia/us-pedophile-news-another-major-pedophile-sex-trafficking-bust-pedophile-owned-msm-completely-silent/
Sun, 06 Aug 2017 13:27:31 +0000Buffalohairhttps://buffalohair.wordpress.com/go/asia/us-pedophile-news-another-major-pedophile-sex-trafficking-bust-pedophile-owned-msm-completely-silent/
]]>https://buffalohair.wordpress.com/go/asia/us-pedophile-news-over-1000-arrested-in-major-pedophile-bust-pedophile-protecting-msm-silent/
Sun, 06 Aug 2017 13:19:49 +0000Buffalohairhttps://buffalohair.wordpress.com/go/asia/us-pedophile-news-over-1000-arrested-in-major-pedophile-bust-pedophile-protecting-msm-silent/
]]>https://pittsburgh.cbslocal.com/go/news/ohio-child-sex-trafficking/
Sun, 06 Aug 2017 00:02:42 +0000kmhoulishttps://pittsburgh.cbslocal.com/go/news/ohio-child-sex-trafficking/CLEVELAND (AP) — A man in prison for child rape and an Ohio woman were convicted Friday in Cleveland of dozens of counts related to the sex trafficking of children as young as 9 years old.

The jury convicted Andre Boynton, 42, and Anika George, 39, of North Royalton, on charges that include human trafficking, conspiracy and multiple counts of child rape and child pornography, Cleveland.com reported. They are scheduled to be sentenced Aug. 25. George’s attorney declined to comment Saturday. Boynton’s attorney did return telephone messages seeking comment.

Prosecutors said Boynton, serving a life sentence in Ohio for raping a 14-year-old girl in 2008, ordered George over a prison phone to abduct boys from Cleveland and bring them back to her apartment. That’s where prosecutors said she used a cellphone to record her having sex with four boys and the boys having sex with a 14-year-old developmentally disabled girl. Prosecutors said the abductions and rapes occurred over a monthlong period in 2014.

Both were also convicted of voyeurism charges for what prosecutors said was George photographing 11 disabled elderly people in various stages of undress at a suburban Cleveland nursing home where she worked.

“I don’t think this building has ever seen this level of depravity,” Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Michael O’Malley said after the verdicts.

Boynton instructed George how to record the rapes and how she should transfer recordings of the assaults to memory cards to deliver to him in prison. No cards were found in a search of his cell.

The news site reported that the mother of two of the boys cried and rocked back and forth as Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Judge Sherrie Miday read the verdicts.

George was kicked out of the courtroom on the first day of trial when she became disruptive and tried to overturn the defense table. She refused to cooperate with her attorney in her defense and smiled as Miday read the verdicts. Boynton is a self-proclaimed sovereign citizen who wanted to represent himself at trial. He showed no emotion and quietly argued with his attorney while the verdicts were read.

Boynton could be sentenced to life without parole after the jury found him to be a violent sexual predator. George faces a possible life sentence with no parole before 10 years.

(Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

]]>https://pittsburgh.cbslocal.com/go/news/polish-man-kidnaps-british-model/
Sat, 05 Aug 2017 23:48:09 +0000kmhoulishttps://pittsburgh.cbslocal.com/go/news/polish-man-kidnaps-british-model/ROME (AP) – Milan police say they have jailed a Polish man in the kidnapping of a British model who was held captive for six days last month.

The police said the man was being held Saturday on suspicion of kidnapping for extortion purposes.

Milan daily newspaper Corriere della Sera said the 20-year-old model was lured to a fake film set on July 11.

Based on court documents, the newspaper says she then was drugged and abducted. Corriere della Sera reports the alleged captor told the woman she could be freed upon payment of 50,000 euros.

The report said investigators also are exploring the possibility the woman was abducted so she could be auctioned off online.

The paper says she was released July 17 because her alleged abductor discovered she had a young child and considered her unsuitable for sex trafficking.

(Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

]]>https://fox13now.com/go/news/more-than-1000-arrests-in-sex-trafficking-operation/
Fri, 04 Aug 2017 14:41:21 +0000David Wellshttps://fox13now.com/go/news/more-than-1000-arrests-in-sex-trafficking-operation/A pastor, a state trooper and a convicted sex offender were among 1,000 people arrested in a monthlong period trying to sell or buy sex across the country.

The arrests were part of the National Johns Suppression Initiative, a series of stings aimed at reducing sex trafficking in the United States.

During the sting operation from June 28 until Monday, authorities cracked down on three Illinois brothels and arrested a convicted child molester in Seattle.

The most arrests were in Harris County, Texas, and in Seattle, with 170 and 160 arrests, respectively.

Cook County, Illinois, Sheriff Thomas J. Dart, the driving force behind the operation, said 37 law enforcement agencies across 17 states rescued 81 adult and juvenile victims. At least 1,020 sex buyers were arrested, and 15 people face trafficking-related charges, he said.

In Arizona, officials said more than 400 people were discouraged from buying sex when they received texts, calls or Web browser redirects informing them about the impact of the illegal sex industry.

Dart announced Thursday that his office will began efforts to create a public database that lists sex buyers who are caught for a second or subsequent time.

The National Johns Suppression Initiative operations have led to the arrests of nearly 8,000 sex buyers since 2011, Dart said.

]]>https://wtkr.com/go/news/more-than-1000-arrests-in-sex-trafficking-operation/
Fri, 04 Aug 2017 11:43:43 +0000Becca Mitchellhttps://wtkr.com/go/news/more-than-1000-arrests-in-sex-trafficking-operation/A pastor, a state trooper and a convicted sex offender were among 1,000 people arrested in a month-long period trying to sell or buy sex across the country.

The arrests were part of the National Johns Suppression Initiative, a series of stings aimed at reducing sex trafficking in the United States.

During the sting operation from June 28 until Monday, authorities cracked down on three Illinois brothels and arrested a convicted child molester in Seattle.

The most arrests were in Harris County, Texas, and in Seattle, with 170 and 160 arrests, respectively.

Cook County, Illinois, Sheriff Thomas J. Dart, the driving force behind the operation, said 37 law enforcement agencies across 17 states rescued 81 adult and juvenile victims. At least 1,020 sex buyers were arrested, and 15 people face trafficking-related charges, he said.

In Arizona, officials said more than 400 people were discouraged from buying sex when they received texts, calls or Web browser redirects informing them about the impact of the illegal sex industry.

Dart announced Thursday that his office will began efforts to create a public database that lists sex buyers who are caught for a second or subsequent time.

The National Johns Suppression Initiative operations have led to the arrests of nearly 8,000 sex buyers since 2011, Dart said.

29.775182-95.310250

]]>https://maureenhager.wordpress.com/go/injustice/shes-someones-daughter/
Thu, 03 Aug 2017 12:23:48 +0000maureenhagerhttps://maureenhager.wordpress.com/go/injustice/shes-someones-daughter/https://chicago.cbslocal.com/go/news/sex-trafficking-sting/
Thu, 03 Aug 2017 11:21:48 +0000Todd Feurerhttps://chicago.cbslocal.com/go/news/sex-trafficking-sting/CHICAGO (CBS) — More than 1,000 people were arrested—including 141 people in Cook County—in a national sex trafficking sting that started in June, authorities announced Wednesday.

The National Johns Suppression Initiative ran its 14th operation from June 28-July 31, according to the Cook County sheriff’s office. The operation involved 37 law enforcement agencies from 17 states and resulted in the arrest of at least 1,020 sex buyers.

Of those arrested, 15 are facing trafficking-related charges, the sheriff’s office said.

In Cook County, 141 people were arrested, including three pimps, the sheriff’s office said. Twelve sex buyers were arrested in Broadview, 15 in Lansing; 18 in Matteson, eight in Rosemont, and five in Arlington Heights.

Additionally, 19 sex buyers were arrested in Lake County, the sheriff’s office said.

Three brothels were shut down in Cook County by the sheriff’s office and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, the sheriff’s office said. Three people were charged with operating brothels and four others were charged with patronizing them. Six adult victims were offered help.

Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart said in a statement that his office would ask the Cook County Board to pass an ordinance creating a publicly searchable database listing the names of sex buyers caught multiple times.

The ordinance would also double fines for those offenders to $2,000, Dart said. Their names would be eligible for removal from the database after two years, as long as there are no additional arrests.

It is around nine at night and I am half way home when I hear the call. A mom is slowly walking up the street, two mournful kids trailing behind. Every few steps they call out “Tigger! Tigger!”

“Oh!” I stop. “Are you looking for a kitty?”

“Yes,” the mom replies. “She seems to be missing.”

“I’m so sorry. What does she look like? I’ll keep my eyes open for her.”

The little girl’s eyes fill with tears.

“She’s black with white paws and a white patch on her body.”

This cat is clearly a beloved part of the family. And she is missing.

I find myself unreasonably affected by this sorrow; this grief associated with a missing cat, a stranger’s missing cat no less.

But I know exactly why.

I am returning home from watching the screening of a film called I Am Jane Doe.
This film is a documentary that exposes the world of underage sex trafficking and tells the courageous (and ongoing) story of mothers and daughters who have come forward to take on the big business that supports online trafficking. It a legal battle against wealthy men and a misinterpretation of a law that protects freedom of speech on the internet at the cost of the lives of kids. The law was created in 1996 when the internet was a baby, and no one would conceive of the evil and exploitation that it could and would generate. At one point in the film the statement is made that it is more difficult to sell a motorcycle online than it is to sell a kid.

The film is gripping and poignant. One moment I find myself in a rage against the evil of both the industry and the justice system; the next moment I tear up as I listen to a teenager talk about being raped over and over again.

The statistics are profoundly disturbing. There are over 450,000 entries for missing children in the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children data base. Of those, one in five are likely sex trafficked. Approximately two-thirds of these children are trafficked online, primarily through a website that sells furniture, instruments, and bicycles. Young girls and boys are manipulated and forced into the nightmare of sex trafficking by men and women who are masters at deceiving and recruiting. It’s horrifying and it’s nauseating. And it is happening in a city near you. I guarantee it.

I leave the theatre deeply disturbed. The statistics and stories wake me up to an area of which I have only a peripheral knowledge. The lives of those in the film are forever changed because of actions of evil, greedy people. Yet, for all the evil present, there was the profound hope represented in all those who had come forward to fight against this wrong. From brave parents to lawyers that will not give up, there is a fight to end this wrong.

Lost cats and lost kids in a world that repeatedly chooses exploitation and money over humanity.

I have all this on my mind when I hear the low call of a mom and her kids looking for a lost cat. It is dark and the streetlights seem dim. Sounds of a summer night in the city are all around us.

It feels poignantly connected. Lost cats and lost kids in a world that repeatedly chooses exploitation and money over humanity. I feel a bit silly connecting the two. A lost cat is nothing compared to the agony of a lost kid. I am well aware of this, yet still I feel sad. It’s all too much.

I remember the beginning of the beautiful book The End of Suffering. The author, Scott Cairns, is grieving over the death of two dogs, and this is his starting point for writing about suffering. His words poignantly describe what I’m currently feeling.

The graves of two dogs may seem to some to be a relatively poor starting point—maybe even, to some, an insulting starting point—for this sort of inquiry. I hope not. I would never mean to equate the loss of a dog—or even the loss of two very good dogs—with every other occasion of human suffering.

Still, I will not discount how hard, how sharp, even this loss remains—and how puzzling. It’s the puzzlement, frankly, that makes even this current, specific grief remind me more generally of other grief, of other painful occasions, and of our overallpredicament.

In any case, as I shovel and as I weep over my big sweet dogs, I wince off and on, a little embarrassed that in a world where each newscast and newspaper brings new images of heart-wrenching human tragedy, I continue to be so broken up over losing my dogs.

My only defense for the moment will have to be that these really were extraordinarily good dogs. And they loved me.

They were Labradors, no less.

Big yellow Labradors.

Innocent as rain.*

I am nearing my own home. The sparkling white lights on the porch that glow all year round, challenging conventional wisdom that says they are for the Christmas season alone, beckon me to warmth and safety; beckon me to the haven I call home. I sigh as I walk up the stairs. I think of the mom grieving her lost girl; I think of the little girl on the street, earnestly looking for her lost kitty. I do hope they find Tigger.

Olivia Rose (Turks and Caicos Weekly News) recently underlined that the Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI) government has remained silent on the issue of sex trafficking, although the US State Department 2017 Trafficking in Persons (TIP) report has pinpointed the country for the third consecutive year as a destination for sex trafficking. She stresses that migrants from Haiti, Dominican Republic and Jamaica—especially stateless children and adolescents—are particularly vulnerable to sex trafficking and forced labor:

According to the US State Department 2017 Trafficking in Persons (TIP) report, men, women, and children are subjected to sex trafficking and forced labour in the territory. It further highlighted “the absence of specific legislation criminalising trafficking as defined by the 2000 UN TIP protocol; the absence of victim identification, screening, and protection procedures; and limited awareness of human trafficking on the part of officials and the public continue to hinder anti-trafficking efforts”.

It noted that a large population of migrants from Haiti, Dominican Republic and Jamaica are particularly vulnerable to sex trafficking and forced labour, with stateless children and adolescents especially at risk.

The report said: “Local stakeholders, including law enforcement officials, have reported specific knowledge of sex trafficking occurring in bars and brothels and noted trafficking-related complicity by some local government officials was a problem.”

In December 2015, the Royal Turks and Caicos Police Force received the green light to be more proactive in tackling human trafficking. The Trafficking in Person’s Prevention Bill 2015 was then passed in the House of Assembly on January 27. The bill will see penalties of unlimited fines being imposed or a term of imprisonment for a maximum of ten years being levied against those found guilty of offences under the bill. Former Minister of Border Control and Labour, Ricardo Don Hue Gardiner said that the bill will clamp down on prostitution and trafficking. He explained that it included “servitude, sexual explicit conduct, slavery, trafficked persons in particular, sexual exploitation which means compelling the participation of the person in prostitution. “The production of child pornography or other pornographic material or any other sexual activity as a result of them being subjected to threat, coercion and abduction as a result of narcotic drugs, force, and abuse of authority or fraud.”

Addressing a similar report as Leader of the Opposition back in 2016, Sharlene Cartwright Robinson said that the US State Department’s report on sex trafficking had negative implications on the country’s reputation. At that time, she accused the Progressive National Party (PNP) Government of failing to address reports of prostitution in the TCI. She cited the increasing reports of women being brought into the TCI under false pretences. Cartwright Robinson said that prostitution in the TCI is a sore issue which the Government seemingly turned a blind eye to. “There are women who are being forced into it, and we want to pretend as if it’s not happening, but it is our responsibility to protect women, children and Turks and Caicos islanders.” [. . .]

NBC News has reported that documents show that a Backpage contractor has been involved in creating or developing third-party content for Backpage ads overseas. Hawley contends that evidence uncovered by his office supports that.

PHNOM PENH (AFP) – Cambodia’s premier Hun Sen on Tuesday ordered a Christian charity that rescues child sex slaves to be shut down, after it featured in a recent CNN report that he described as an “insult” to his country.The impoverished Southeast Asian nation has long been a destination for sex tourists, with minors often the victims of a flesh trade aided by endemic corruption.

A CNN report broadcast on 25 July featured three girls who were reportedly rescued from the sex trade by Agape International Missions (AIM), a charity founded by an American pastor which has been operating in the country since 1988.

The girls had first appeared in a 2013 documentary by CNN on Svay Pak, a poor suburb on the outskirts of Phnom Penh, before the network decided to pay them another visit this year and follow up on their fate.

Until a crackdown in the early 2000s Svay Pak hosted a huge red light district notorious for child sex slaves and the documentary showed the trade still existed a decade on.

The head of the charity, American pastor Don Brewster, was quoted in last week’s report as saying that Svay Pak was “at one point the epicenter” of the child sex trade.

He said things had dramatically improved in recent years but that some trade in minors still occured behind closed doors.

But Hun Sen, one of the world’s longest serving leaders, took exception to the report.

“I cannot accept the insult by an NGO that was broadcasted on CNN… that said in Cambodia mothers sold daughters to be prostitutes,” he told a graduation ceremony.

“This is an insult that cannot be tolerated. At any cost, this organisation must leave Cambodia. We cannot let them stay anymore,” he added.

AIM did not respond to requests for comment.

Hun Sen and nationalists seized on an early version of CNN’s online report which described the girls as Cambodian, when in fact they either spoke Vietnamese or Khmer with a thick Vietnamese accent.

CNN later removed the word Cambodian from their headline.

The network did not respond to an AFP request for comment but told the Cambodia Daily it “stood by its reporting”.

Many of Svay Pak’s poorest and most vulnerable inhabitants are indeed Vietnamese migrants.

But police raids, court cases and efforts by charities show ample evidence over the years that children from impoverished Cambodian families are also at risk of sex trafficking.

Hun Sen has long jousted with local and international NGOs, which he accuses of meddling in Cambodian affairs.

In 2015 he drove through a controversial and broadly-worded law that allows authorities to shutter any that harms national security or the “traditions and culture” of Cambodia.